Zempler Premium

Zempler Premium is a paid pricing plan on a Zempler Bank personal current account. It sits above the free plan and below the top tier, and it is aimed at people who want a bit more from their everyday account than the basic version gives them. The plan carries a monthly fee, and the provider's own site has today's figures.

The most important thing to know before anything else is that Zempler states personal current accounts are temporarily closed to new applications¹. If you already hold a Zempler personal account you can move between plans, and Zempler says it is free to do so². If you do not hold one, you cannot currently open a Zempler Premium account, whatever the plan offers.

Zempler Bank is the bank that used to be called Cashplus. It is a fully regulated UK bank³, authorised by the FCA under reference 671140 and listed by the Bank of England as a bank incorporated in the UK authorised to accept deposits⁴. Money held with it is covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme in the usual way.

What the Zempler Premium plan includes

Zempler's personal current account is built as a base account with add-ons you can take or leave. The account itself comes with the everyday things: a contactless debit card, payments in and out, Direct Debits and standing orders, and access through the app and Online Banking. On top of that, Zempler lists international payments, overdrafts and a travel currency card as optional extras you can add if you need them¹.

The pricing plans change what you pay for those things rather than what the account fundamentally is. Zempler's plan structure runs from a free tier up through paid tiers, and the paid tiers exist to bundle fee waivers and allowances that would otherwise be charged individually. The Premium plan sits in the middle of that structure. Zempler's own site sets out exactly what each plan includes and what it costs, and that is the only place to check the current position, because plan contents change.

Two features of the wider account are worth knowing because they apply whatever plan you are on. Zempler does not pay interest on its personal current accounts¹. And the account supports instant card freeze and unfreeze online or in the app, so a lost card can be stopped without closing the account³.

If you are weighing up whether a paid plan is worth it at all, the general question is whether the fee is less than the value of the fee waivers and allowances you would actually use. That calculation depends entirely on your own pattern of payments, withdrawals and travel, and on the current plan figures, which Zempler publishes.

Overdraft add-on: short-term borrowing with a personalised limit

The overdraft is an add-on rather than a feature of the plan itself. Zempler describes it as attached to your current account, acting as a temporary safety net if you run low on funds¹⁰. It is not designed for regular or long-term borrowing, and Zempler says so plainly¹⁰.

Limits are personalised and vary with your individual circumstances¹¹. Zempler reviews the limit every six months, and you can ask for it to be reduced or removed at any time⁷. The bank sends alerts when you are about to enter the overdraft, when you have entered it, and when you are approaching the limit⁷. If you use the overdraft often, Zempler may contact you about it being in repeat use, because it is intended as a short-term safety net rather than a regular source of credit⁷.

To repay, you need to make at least the minimum repayment on time¹³. Zempler also sends emails and texts when a payment is due¹¹.

Two practical points catch people out. First, credit cannot be requested during the application process, so an overdraft is something you arrange after the account is open¹⁴. Second, if you want to receive overdraft and limit increase offers, you have to be opted into marketing communications¹⁵. That is unusual enough to be worth stating: opting out of marketing also opts you out of being told you could have a higher limit.

You may be eligible for both an overdraft and Zempler's Creditbuilder product at the same time¹⁶. Creditbuilder is a separate product with its own monthly payments¹⁷, and it is not part of the Premium plan.

How Zempler's fees and charges work

Zempler charges in three layers, and it helps to separate them.

The first layer is the plan fee. The Premium plan has a monthly fee, and the free tier does not. The current figures are on Zempler's site¹.

The second layer is transaction charges that apply on some plans and not others. Zempler's Activeplus account, for example, carries a monthly fee and a card fee, and includes a set number of free payments and transfers each month with a charge after that¹⁸. Its Freedom account has no monthly fee and a smaller free allowance¹⁸. Receiving money is free and unlimited on those accounts¹⁸, and cash withdrawals are free in the UK and outside it¹⁸. The Premium plan's own allowances and charges are set out on Zempler's site.

The third layer is charges for optional extras. An additional card carries a charge, billed to the account, and Zempler's page on adding one sets out the current amount¹⁹. International payments sent through Zempler's service carry no Zempler fee for returned payments, though the sender may receive less than they sent because of fees applied elsewhere in the chain²⁰.

Who can apply, and why new personal accounts are paused

Zempler states that personal current accounts are temporarily closed to new applications¹. That applies across the personal range, including the Activeplus account¹⁸. The provider does not give a reason on the pages it publishes, and no reopening date is stated.

What this means in practice is that Zempler Premium is currently a plan for existing customers. If you already hold a Zempler personal current account, you can move onto it. If you do not, you cannot open one at the moment, and no amount of eligibility on your part changes that.

For business customers the position is different. Zempler's business accounts are open and are made for freelancers, sole traders, small and growing businesses, including limited companies, partnerships and charities²². Zempler says new business accounts are approved in minutes³. If you are a sole trader using a personal account and you need higher cash deposit limits, Zempler points to its business accounts instead²³.

There is one more condition worth knowing for anyone who has applied and chosen to pay later: Zempler requires the initial account fee to be paid before the account is received²⁴.

Banking with Zempler: the app, Online Banking and the Post Office

Zempler runs on an app and Online Banking rather than branches. The app is available on the iOS App Store and Google Play²⁵, and Zempler describes it as easy to use with clear design and navigation²⁶. Through it you can check your balance, make payments, block cards and report cards as lost or stolen²⁷.

Payments can be made in the app or in Online Banking²⁸. Online Banking adds spending tracking and statements on the go, itemised billing to track expenses, and the ability to make a payment²⁵. Both channels let you keep a close eye on your spending and overdraft status¹².

If you need to reach a person, you can send a message using the app or Online Banking and a member of the team will contact you directly²⁹. Zempler states that it cannot service accounts through social media, for security reasons³⁰.

Cash is handled at the Post Office rather than at Zempler itself. There is an annual cash deposit limit, and how it renews depends on when you opened the account: accounts opened after 30 November 2022 renew on the account start date, while earlier accounts renew each calendar year²³. Cheques are the gap. Zempler states that it does not currently allow customers to deposit cash into their account with a cheque¹⁸.

Zempler also offers a Euro travel currency card, which you can order once you have received and activated your Zempler Bank account card³.

Opening an account: the ID and address documents Zempler accepts

Applications are made online. If Zempler cannot verify your identity and address during the application, it will request documents from you by personalised email¹⁴. You then upload them to the secure online portal named in that email, using your surname and application reference number²². Charities and other business applicants email documents instead, including the application reference number²².

The documents Zempler accepts for identity include an EEA member state ID card, a firearms certificate or shotgun licence, a Northern Ireland electoral ID card, a construction industry scheme card, a military ID card and a biometric residency card³¹. An EU driving licence is accepted, and you need to include copies of both the front and the back of the card³¹.

Once the account is open, the card has to be activated. For the credit card, Zempler sends the PIN separately in the post to your registered address, and activation is done in the app or Online Banking under Manage My Account, by entering the requested digits of the card number²⁵. You also set up a username, password and memorable questions through the app or the application status tracker, using the application reference number emailed to you when you applied²⁵.

If you are switching rather than opening fresh, Zempler is part of the free Current Account Switch Service, which it says takes seven days⁶. The balance on your old account is transferred automatically, and BACS and Faster Payments sent to the old account are redirected to the Zempler account⁶. The service is free to use¹. The obvious obstacle is that a switch into a new Zempler personal account cannot start while personal applications are paused.

Scams, fraud claims and complaints

Zempler runs 24/7 fraud monitoring alongside the instant card freeze³. If you have made a payment or shared financial details with a suspected scammer, Zempler asks you to call 0330 024 0924 immediately, or +44 207 153 8940 from abroad⁸.

If you claim a refund, Zempler says it will contact you with an update within five working days, and that claims will be processed within five working days and reimbursed within that time if approved⁸. Where extra information is needed, it can take up to 35 business days to resolve a claim⁸. A levy of up to £100 per claim is deducted from the refund⁸. There is no excess where the customer has a vulnerability that has a material impact on their ability to protect themselves from a scam⁸.

Zempler assesses each claim on evidence of first-party fraud, your vulnerability, evidence of gross negligence, and whether the claim qualified under the reimbursement requirement⁸. It may share relevant information such as personal or account details with the receiving firm, with your permission, and may share case details with the police after a claim is raised⁸.

Accounts can be restricted. Zempler states that it will only ever restrict an account to protect its customers, or because of a legal obligation³⁰.

If a complaint is not resolved to your satisfaction, the Financial Ombudsman Service is the free, independent route. The ombudsman service publishes quarterly complaints data; in the first quarter of 2025/26 it recorded 6,800 complaints about fraud and scams, down from 8,800 in the previous quarter³². That figure covers the whole market, not Zempler alone.

How your money is protected with Zempler

Zempler Bank is a fully regulated UK bank³. It appears on the FCA Register as Zempler Bank Limited, authorised since 5 February 2016, with permissions to accept deposits and to enter into regulated credit agreements as lender⁴. It also appears on the Bank of England's list of banks incorporated in the UK authorised to accept deposits, dated 1 September 2026⁵. The company is active on the Companies House register, incorporated on 29 October 2003 under company number 04947027³³.

Because it is a bank authorised to accept deposits, money in a Zempler account is covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. That protection is per person, per bank, and it applies to the balance in the account. It does not cover money you have already sent to a scammer, which is why the fraud claim process above matters separately.

The name history is worth knowing because it affects how you search for the bank. The FCA Register lists Cashplus Bank, Cashplus, Capital Recovery Solutions, APS Financial and Advanced Payment Solutions Limited as previous names of the same firm⁴. If you are looking for old paperwork or an old statement, that is the same bank.

Zempler publishes service information including operational incidents. It reported one major operational or security incident to the FCA in the 12 months to 30 June 2026, and none in the final quarter of that period²⁷.

Managing a Zempler account for someone else, or after a death

Zempler accepts a Power of Attorney or a Third Party mandate for customers who can no longer manage their account themselves²⁷. To register one, call the team to notify them and then mail or email the document³⁴. An enduring power of attorney must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before Zempler can register it on an account, after which it can be used in the same way as a lasting power of attorney³⁴. As attorney, you can request statements by contacting the team³⁴.

Where a guardianship order applies, the guardian can manage the account, request statements, update details, manage payments and Direct Debits, and open and close accounts³⁵.

When an account holder dies, Zempler freezes the account once notified, cancels the card and stops payments out, including Direct Debits and standing orders, until documents are received and an executor or next of kin is confirmed³¹. The documents needed are a death certificate or coroner's certificate, proof of identity, proof of home address as a separate document, and the will if available with the executors' details and ID³¹. Funds can be used for urgent expenses such as a funeral on a case-by-case basis³⁶. Any debt on the account is written off unless it had already been transferred to a debt collection agency³⁶.

For a sole trader account, the account is frozen on notification, cards are cancelled, debt is written off and funds are transferred to the executor or next of kin after document review³¹. For a limited company account, Zempler sends a letter to the next of kin, executor or solicitor with next steps once the death certificate is received, and a change of directorship is needed for the account to continue³¹.

Moving between Zempler plans, or leaving

Moving between Zempler pricing plans is free². In the app you go to Settings, select Pricing Plan and then View Plans, check your options and choose². In Online Banking you go to Settings, then Account details, scroll down to Pricing plan and select the Switch pricing plan button². Any eligible cashback payments are credited to your new account².

There is one restriction on the business side: a Business Premier account can be switched to Business Go or Business Extra, but not back again².

If you want to leave Zempler altogether, the Current Account Switch Service handles the move to another participating bank in seven days, transferring the balance and redirecting payments⁶. If you would rather keep the Zempler account open and move only some payments, a partial switch does that instead. And if you are moving because of a problem rather than a preference, the ombudsman service is free and independent.